When Phillip Gyau was inducted into the Maryland Soccer Hall of Fame in 2008, his 15-year-old son had to take the day off. As Joseph Gyau came to know, the national team's residency program isn't for the faint of heart. “A profession like this starts early,” said Amina Gyau, Joseph's mother. Now 21, Joseph continues to climb the ladder: He signed in June with the Under-23 team of Borussia Dortmund, a Champions League staple and one of the two most prominent clubs in Germany's Bundesliga.

Under Armour took a step toward gaining greater global recognition for its brand Thursday, announcing a sponsorship of South American soccer club Colo-Colo, part of Chile's Primera Division. Baltimore-based Under Armour said the partnership is the first in which it will supply uniforms to a "top-tier" South American soccer club, winner of 29 national titles. The sports apparel maker will design and make uniforms and training apparel for the clubs teams, as well as products for fans, under the five-year-agreement.

Bob Baffert , the Hall of Fame trainer of Preakness entry Bayern, hopes his horse has more luck in Baltimore than Bodemeister did at Pimlico two years ago. After winning the Arkansas Derby that year, Bodemeister finished second in both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness. After Bayern won in Arkansas last month, Baffert decided to have him race in the 1-mile Derby trial rather than the 1 ¼-mile Derby. Bayern - named after soccer power Bayern Munich, the favorite club of the horse's owner Kaleem Shah - finished first in the Derby trial with Rosie Napravnik aboard, but he was later disqualified for interference and given second.

The Caspian Soccer Club is in its final days of practice before heading to Gothenberg, Sweden, to participate in the prestigious Gothia Cup.Coach Mahmood Ebrahimzadeh, a former professional player with World Cup and Olympic experience, is taking over three teams -- boys and girls 18-under and 13-under boys -- to represent Carroll and Frederick counties. The club will be leaving for Europe on Saturday with Gothia Cup play beginning on Monday.Ebrahimzadeh said 600 to 700 teams and about 20,000 young soccer players from all over the world will be competing.

The Caspian Soccer Club players and coaches will receive a Carroll County flag from the county commissioners to carry to the Gothia Cup International Soccer Tournament in Gothenburg, Sweden.The ceremony will take place at 4 p.m. today on the steps of the County Office Building.The commissioners have endorsed the players as goodwill ambassadors. Players from more than 60 countries will participate in the tournament in Sweden.Meanwhile, a spaghetti dinner will be served from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Friday at the Westminster VFW Post 467, 519 Poole St., to benefit the Caspian Soccer Club.

By Ed McDonough and Ed McDonough,SPECIAL TO THE SUN | September 10, 1998

A NEW ERA in area youth soccer begins this weekend at Roberts Mill Park in Taneytown.Francis Scott Key Junior Eagles Soccer Club kicks off its regular season at its new home Saturday, and the group has a morning ceremony planned to dedicate its fields, show appreciation to the city for their construction and celebrate opening day.Action at the new park starts with an 8: 30 a.m. game between the Francis Scott Key under-10 boys B team and Reisterstown/Owings Mills,...

IRONIC, IN a way, this thing about a shortage of fields in Howard County. Just ask the Thunder Soccer Club, which despite a morning delay yesterday because of soggy fields, is conducting its season-ending Fall Bash tournament for boys this weekend and for girls next weekend, drawing 135 teams from as far as New York and Ohio. "We're a western Howard County club, but most of our games are being played in the eastern part of the county," said Scott Maurer, who with Kim Clapp chairs the growing travel club's event.

The temperatures here high and the Soccer Club of Baltimore boys were hot, winning four Maryland Cups yesterday at Essex Community College.All state boys' and girls' champions in age groups from under-12 to under-20, plus runners-up in the girls under-17 and under-18 divisions, advanced to the United States Youth Soccer Region I tournament July 2-5 in Erie, Pa. Regional titlists in under-16 to under-20 age groups go to the national championships July 30-Aug....

Conceding one goal in five games is a superlative performance for most defenses, but when that one score creates a deficit in the championship game to an elite team, the results are not often favorable. Fortunately for the Soccer Club of Baltimore Bays, Kwaku Boateng is healthy and hungry. The Hammond High product scored twice and assisted David Glaudemans' game-winner as the Bays stormed past the Philadelphia-area Delco Arsenal, 3-1, yesterday to capture the 27th Annual Columbia Invitation under-19 boys championship at Centennial High School.

Under Armour took a step toward gaining greater global recognition for its brand Thursday, announcing a sponsorship of South American soccer club Colo-Colo, part of Chile's Primera Division. Baltimore-based Under Armour said the partnership is the first in which it will supply uniforms to a "top-tier" South American soccer club, winner of 29 national titles. The sports apparel maker will design and make uniforms and training apparel for the clubs teams, as well as products for fans, under the five-year-agreement.

Robert G. Doerfler, a retired insurance salesman and veteran soccer coach who accompanied the Archbishop Curley High School soccer team to Europe, died Thursday of liver and pancreatic cancer at his Mayfield home. He was 84. "Bob lived and enjoyed a full life of giving and sharing and also giving good counsel," said Monsignor William E. Burke, pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Roman Catholic Church in Mayfield, where Mr. Doerfler had been a longtime communicant. "He was a first-class husband, father and grandfather.

McDonogh boys coach Steve Nichols made a difficult decision this offseason to break away from the U.S. Development Academy and create his own club soccer team. The Academy rules prohibit players from competing for their respective high schools without a waiver and require uniformity with daily training. Nichols was confident he could build an environment where players could get optimal training and still compete for their respective schools. With this in mind, Nichols left the Baltimore Bays Chelsea and formed Baltimore Celtic Soccer Club.

IF YOU have a travel soccer player under your roof or nearby, this may be a big, busy weekend for the household. It's Snickers Maryland State Cup time, a spring ritual that means competition distinct from league play. For some age groups, it's a rite that by midsummer can yield a national title, because the competition is going on across the country. Three county clubs - the Soccer Association of Columbia/Howard County, the Columbia Soccer Club, and the western county's Thunder Soccer Club - have teams entered.

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa -- Jerry Richardson, coach of the notorious Mandela United Football Club, told the Truth and Reconciliation Commission yesterday that Winnie Madikizela-Mandela ordered all the murders and assaults he committed."